Standard Lithium files positive PEA for Southwest Arkansas lithium project
Standard Lithium Ltd. [SLI-TSXV, NYSE American; S5L-FSE] filed a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) technical report for the company’s Southwest Arkansas lithium project, further to its news release dated October 12, 2021. The report is available on SEDAR and the Standard Lithium website.
The report was prepared by independent consulting companies: NORAM, HGA (Hunt, Guillot & Associates), Apex Geoscience Ltd., ECCI, Matrix Solutions Inc. and Metneth2o Inc.
Key points include a Pretax US$2.83-billion net present value (NPV) at 8% discount rate and an internal rate of return (IRR) of 40.5%. After-tax US$1.97-billion NPV at 8% discount rate and IRR of 32.1%.
The project would have a 20-year mine life producing an average of 30,000 tonnes per year of battery-quality lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LHM) with operating costs of US$2,599 per tonne of battery-quality lithium hydroxide. AACE Class 5 total capital expenditure estimate is US$870-million, including conservative 25% contingency of direct capital costs.
The Southwest Arkansas lithium project PEA lithium brine resource is updated to consider the potential unitized area of production, leading to an increased total (global) in situ resource of 1,195,000 tonnes lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) at the inferred category.
Standard Lithium’s flagship project is located in southern Arkansas, where it is engaged in the testing and proving of the com
The company has commissioned its first-of-a-kind industrial-scale direct lithium extraction demonstration plant at Lanxess’s south plant facility in southern Arkansas. The demonstration plant utilizes the company’s proprietary LiSTR technology to selectively extract lithium from Lanxess’s tail brine. The demonstration plant is being used for proof-of-concept and commercial feasibility studies. The scalable, environmentally friendly process eliminates the use of evaporation ponds, reduces processing time from months to hours and greatly increases the effective recovery of lithium.
The company is also pursuing the resource development of over 30,000 acres of separate brine leases located in southwest Arkansas and approximately 45,000 acres of mineral leases located in the Mojave Desert in San Bernardino county, Southern California.